


Just Some Stranger

by TheUselessPaperClip



Series: Just Some Stranger [1]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Comfort/Angst, Domestic Fluff, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Eventual Sex, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Smut, Heavy Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-13 00:27:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29019693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheUselessPaperClip/pseuds/TheUselessPaperClip
Summary: This is my first TWD story... Let’s see how this goes. It’s going to start out on the farm, the day that the other members of the group arrive on Hershel’s farm. I noticed my OC Eleanor has the same last name as Maggie/Beth/Hershel so I figured she could play as their sister. She’s two years older than Maggie, 24. I had trouble finding Daryl’s age but when I take into account that season 10 is about 10 years after the outbreak, and the Wiki puts Daryl around 40, I’ll say he’s about 31-32 in Season 2.
Relationships: Daryl Dixon & Original Female Character(s), Daryl Dixon/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Just Some Stranger [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2128923
Kudos: 6





	1. The Guests

I felt my eyes peel open, the sound of a loud engine coming from outside. I pushed myself out of bed, pulling on some jeans as I rushed downstairs. I figured it was just Otis coming back from another hunt, but when I arrived downstairs I was greeted by a group of people I didn't know. Hershel, Maggie, Patricia, Beth, Otis, Jimmy, and my boyfriend Alex were all out front, speaking with a group of strangers. They looked like they'd been to hell and back. Their clothes were dirty, they looked exhausted, hungry. From what I heard, one of their own had been shot and Hershel was treating them. 

"Dad-" I pushed the door the rest of the way open and stepped out onto the porch, "-what's going on?" 

Hershel turned his head, "It's alright, Eleanor. Just go back inside." 

Maggie and Beth turned to go inside, bringing me in with them. I glanced over my shoulder at the strangers, spotting quite a few people. It was worrying since I knew what was out there, who was out there. Hershel didn't want to believe it, he didn't want to believe that these people were gone. However, I was in no place to tell him otherwise, as one of those people was my mother. 

Maggie held my arm gently, bringing me back inside. 

"Ellie, you need to be in bed. Daddy said you had a fever this morning and we can't have you getting any worse." She guided me back to the stairs, letting go of my arm once we got to them. "Go on. Get." Maggie shooed me up the stairs.

I let out a heavy sigh, heading up the stairs. By now I would have made some playful remark to Maggie or Beth, but as of right now I could only think of the questions lingering in my head. 

_Who are those people?_

_What are they doing here?_

_Who got shot?_

Upon getting to my room, I made sure to close the door behind me. I rushed over to my window, pulling the curtains back. In the front yard, there was an RV, followed by a green car and a motorcycle. I hadn't met the others that seemed to be with them as I was asleep when they arrived. I could hear the muffled sounds of their voices as they spoke, but I couldn't make out the words through the glass and how far they were from my window. 

Not but five minutes later, there was a knock at my door. Judging by how quiet it was, it was Beth. 

"Come in!" I called over. 

The door opened and Beth poked her head in, "El?" 

"What is it?" 

"We need you to come outside. It's a long story but-" She ran her hand over her face. Beth was clearly shaken up. "-Otis died last night. We're having a funeral for him..." 

I felt my body tense at her words. _Otis is dead?_

"Beth- What happened? Did those people-" 

"No-" She lifted her head, "-No, they didn't do anything to him. He went to go get some supplies for that kid downstairs, but he didn't make it back." 

I lowered my head, drawing in a sharp breath. I wanted to ask more, but I could tell Beth didn't want to talk about it. Getting up from the chair beside my window, I reached over to grab my shoes and pulled them on. Beth waited for me, guiding me outside. When we got out the door, everyone was already beside a group of trees, placing rocks in a pile beside them. Maggie, Hershel, Patricia, Jimmy, and Alex were all standing alongside the strangers in a circle around the rock pile. I joined in, keeping my head down and my mouth shut. I couldn't help but feel on edge around these people. I stayed behind Beth, making my way into the crowd. With my hands folded neatly in front of me, I stood beside Beth as she stopped next to Maggie. 

Maggie glanced at me, then looking back to the pile of rocks. Hershel was speaking for Otis, a book in his hands as each person took turns putting a rock in the pile. 

"Blessed be God," Hershel began, "Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Praise be to him for the gift of our brother, Otis. For his span of years, for his abundance of character. Otis, who gave his life to save a child's, now more than ever, our most precious asset." 

I flinched as I heard Patricia suppress her cries. She had tears pouring down her cheeks, small whimpers slipping out every now and again. 

"We thank you, God, for the peace he enjoys in your embrace. He died as he lived," Hershel bit his lip for a moment, "-in grace." 

He glanced over at one of the men, "Shane, will you speak for Otis?" 

The man lifted his head. He looked a bit uncomfortable, like something was on his mind. "I'm not good at it." The man, or, 'Shane,' shifted his gaze from Hershel to the pile of rocks, "I'm sorry." I noticed he was wearing Otis's clothes, a plaid shirt with some overalls. 

"You were the last one with him." Patricia spoke up, "You shared his final moments. Please. I need to hear. I need to know his death had meaning." Her voice cracked. 

"Okay," Shane nodded as he then lowered his head, "We were about done. Almost out of ammo. We were down to pistols by then. I was limping. It was bad, ankle all swollen up. _'We've got to save the boy.'_ See, that's what he said. He gave me his backpack, he shoved me ahead. ' _Run_ ,' he said. He said _'I'll take the rear. I'll cover you.'_ And when I looked back..." His voice cracked as he spoke. Shane stopped talking. He began walking toward the pile, reaching into the wheelbarrow as he grabbed a stone, clutching it tightly in his hand. "If not for Otis, I'd have never made it out alive, and that goes for Carl too. It was Otis. He saved us both." 

He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. Patricia's face was red as she was on the brink of tears. I felt my stomach twist into knots, just thinking of what had happened to Otis, how scared he must have been. 

"If any death ever had meaning, it was his," Shane assured her. He then stepped to the side, having a slight limp in his step as he placed the rock into the pile. 

Everyone took a moment of silence afterward, eyeing the rock pile, occasionally glancing at each other. 

When I saw a tear roll down Beth's cheek, I reached over and carefully grabbed her hand. "It's okay, Beth," I whispered to her. She gave me her best smile before she eventually wrapped her arms around me in a tight embrace. "It'll be okay." I rubbed my hand up and down her back, my head on her shoulder. "You'll be okay. I promise." 

Beth nodded, letting a small gasp into my shoulder. "Okay-" She whined, "-Thank you, Ellie."

I patted her back for a moment, eventually letting her go. Beth nodded, walking off to comfort Patricia. I followed Maggie, knowing she could likely give me a better idea of what was going on. 

“Mags?” I called out, making my way over to her as I folded my arms in front of me. “Maggie?” 

“Yeah, Ellie?” Maggie turned on her heel as she faced me, now standing near one of the new vehicles. I saw my dad over with a few of the strangers, speaking with them. 

“Who are these people? What’s going on?” 

“Oh- that’s right, you were sleepin’.” Maggie nodded, putting her hand on her hip. “Otis was hunting, accidentally shot their little boy. Daddy fixed him up, that’s why Otis was out there with that other man.” 

I drew in a breath, “Otis shot him?” 

“It was an accident, kid was standing behind the buck.” 

“He’s alright now? Dad helped him?” 

Maggie nodded, “Yeah, they went out to go get a respirator so he could do surgery. It’s just-” She closed her eyes for a moment, pondering on what had happened. 

“I know, Mags.” I sighed, placing a hand on her shoulder. Despite Beth and Maggie nearly crying over the situation, I was able to hold everything back. I’d learned how to contain myself thanks to Alex. 

“Alright- Well, they said one of that a woman’s little girl is missing. I’m gonna go grab a map for them, talk it over with dad.” 

I nodded, “I’ll come too.” I dropped my hand from her shoulder, folding it back with my other arm. 

“Nuh-uh. You need to go back inside and get back in bed.” Maggie lifted her hand and pressed the backside to my forehead, then moving it to my cheek. “You still have that fever, so you need to get some rest.” 

“Maggie, I’m fine. Please. If I spend one more minute in that room I’m going to go crazy.” I pleaded, my voice softening. 

Maggie let out a sigh, glancing down to the grass for a moment. “Fine. If you get worse, don’t go tellin’ Daddy that I had anything to do with it.” 

“You have my word.” I teased, turning on my heel as I made my way over to the truck. There were a few people standing around the hood of the vehicle. That man, ‘Shane,’ a cop, a man with a crossbow, and a blonde woman. Dad was there as well, speaking to the officer. When I arrived at the truck, Herschel turned his head to me, eyeing me for a moment. I could tell he wanted to tell me to go inside, but he didn’t want to interrupt the officer. 

“How long has this girl been lost?” Hershel asked. Maggie came from behind a tree, a rolled-up map in her hand. 

“This’ll be day three.” One of the men answered. 

“County survey map,” Maggie made her way over, rolling the map out on the hood of the car, “Shows terrain and elevations.” 

“This is perfect, we can finally get this thing organized.” The cop spoke up, looking over the map. 

When I looked up from the map, I immediately noticed the man with the crossbow staring right back at me. His eyes narrowed as he looked me over. As his eyes came up to meet mine, he quickly looked away, glancing at the map. I brushed it off, glancing at the map. Despite trying to ignore it, I felt a lingering feeling in the back of my mind, trying to figure out why he was staring at me. 

“We’ll grid the whole area, start searching in teams.” The cop continued. 

“Not you,” Hershel looked away from the map to look at the officer, “Not today. You gave three units of blood. You wouldn’t be hiking five minutes in this heat before passing out.” He looked over to Shane. “And your ankle-- push it now, you’ll be laid up a month. No good to anybody.”

“Guess it’s just me.” The man with the crossbow spoke up, “I’m gonna head back to the creek, work my way from there.” 

Shane lifted his head, “I can still be useful. I’ll drive up to the interstate, see if Sophia wandered back.” 

“Alright,” The cop lifted his head, “Tomorrow then. We’ll start doing this right.” 

“That means we can’t have our people out there with just knives. They need the gun training we’ve been promising them.” Shane folded his arms on the hood of the truck. 

“I’d prefer you not carrying guns on my property.” Hershel let out a quiet sigh.

“Yeah-” I spoke up for once, “-I don’t think-” 

“We’ve managed so far without turning this into an armed camp.” Hershel cut me off, looking at the two men. 

“All due respect, you get a crowd of those things wandering in here…” Shane gave a sarcastic laugh. I eyed him for a moment, feeling a bit of irritation building. I felt that lingering doubt about him since this morning. 

“Look, we’re guests here.” The cop began, “This is your property, and we will respect that.” The cop eyed Shane. He then pulled his gun from his holster, placing it down on top of the map. Shane looked away, clearly disappointed, but he eventually did the same with his own gun. 

“First things first: set camp, find Sophia.” The cop instructed. 

“I hate to be the one to ask, but somebody’s got to.” Shane spoke up, “What happens if we find her and she’s bit? I think we should all be clear on how we handle that.” 

I felt my stomach churn at the words. _Handle that?_ I could tell by the way he delivered his words what he meant. _They kill them…?_

“You do what has to be done.” The cop let out a sigh, lowering his head. I could hear it in his voice that he didn’t want to say it, and that it was a sensitive subject. 

“And her mother? What do you tell her?” Maggie’s voice was raised. She wasn’t shouting, but it was a bit loud.” 

“The truth.” The blonde woman answered, a rather stingy look on her face. 

“I’ll gather and secure all the weapons.” Shane nodded, “Make sure no one’s carrying till we’re at a practice range off site. I do request one rifleman on lookout. Dale’s got experience.” 

I noted Maggie and Hershel eyeing each other, Maggie meeting my eyes as well. We all had the same thoughts of these people, realizing their views were certainly much different than ours. 

“Our people would feel safer,” The officer turned to face Hershel, “less inclined to carry a gun.” 

Hershel thought for a moment, eventually nodding. 

“Thank you.” The cop thanked him. 

“That stuff you brought,” Maggie glanced at him. I noticed the man with the crossbow walking behind the other woman and Maggie. “Got more antibiotics, bandages, anything like that?” 

The cop sighed, and the blonde woman answered, “Just what you’ve seen.” 

“We’re running short already, I should make a run into town.” Maggie insisted. 

“Not the place Shane went?” The cop sounded rather worried. 

“No, there’s a pharmacy just a mile down the road. I’ve done it before.” Maggie nodded, glancing at Hershel. 

“See our man there in the baseball cap? That’s Glenn.” The cop turned along with us, looking over at the young, Asian man over to the side, “Our go-to-town expert. I’d ask him along just to be cautious.” 

Hershel met the cop’s eyes, staring at him for a moment. Afterward, he nodded to Maggie. She returned the nod, walking over toward ‘Glenn.’ The officer left as well, walking off. Hershel and I followed him, heading back over to the house. I rubbed my eyes for a moment, the heat adding on to my fever. 

“You should be in bed.” 

“I know, dad, I just-” 

“You don’t ‘just’ anything. You’re ill. You need to rest.” Hershel sighed. 

“I know, I know… I’m sorry. I can’t be inside that long, it gets stuffy.” I sighed as well, keeping my head down. “Just today, let me walk around today.” 

“I-” Hershel sighed once again, “Alright. Just stay away from those newcomers there. If they have anything, you’re more likely to catch it since your immune system is already busy fighting off that cold.” 

“I know, dad. I’ll try.” 

“Good. I’ll be inside, got to check on that boy.” Hershel made his way into the house, going up the steps of the front porch as he then went through the door. The cop was sitting on the front steps, his face pale as he appeared rather sick. I was about to walk away from him, not wanting to catch whatever he had until I spotted the bandage on his arm, realizing he likely gave blood for that little boy. 

“I- Uh…” I paced over, standing in front of the steps, “Hello.” I gave a short, anxious wave. 

“Hey.” He responded with a low voice, his breathing a bit scratchy. 

“So- Is that your son in there? My sister said he fixed him up, that he’ll be okay.” 

“Yeah-” He answered, “Yeah… I’m grateful. Without him, I… I would’ve lost Carl.” His voice cracked at the name. 

“That’s good, I-” I sighed, “I’m sure Otis didn’t mean to hurt him. He’s always been a great man… Would’ve done- Did do everything he could for that kid.” 

“Thank you. I would’ve told him, but… I’m so sorry.” He looked up at me with an apologetic look. 

“Don’t be. God, he… He has his ways. While sometimes I don’t like them, I just have to trust in it.” 

He nodded, “I’m Rick.” The man lifted his hand, offering to shake mine. 

“Eleanor.” I reached out as well, returning the handshake to him. 

He nodded, glancing off to the side. I followed his gaze, spotting that man with the crossbow over his shoulder once again. 

“Daryl.” Rick stood up from the steps, “You okay on your own?” 

This ‘Daryl’ turned to face Rick. “I’m better on my own. I’ll be back before dark.” 

“Hey,” Rick called out when Daryl kept walking. “We got a base. We can get this search properly organized now.” 

“You got a point or are we just chatting?” Daryl had a bit of a snide tone to his voice like he wanted to leave as soon as he could. 

“My point is it lets you off the hook,” Rick answered. “You don’t owe us anything.” 

“My other plans fell through,” Daryl replied, huffing as he turned to walk away. 

I stood with Rick for a moment, watching as he looked around the area, pondering on the situation. Eventually, I turned my head to look at Daryl. Something was pulling me. I don’t know whether it was curiosity, intuition, or just stupidity, but I turned on my heel and began lightly jogging over to the man. When I got close, he turned his head to look over his shoulder, but he didn’t stop walking. 

“Wait up!” I called out. 

“Can’t. Got some lookin’ to do.” He turned his head back, eyeing the treeline ahead of him. 

“At least let me come with you.” I knew I shouldn’t go out into the woods, but it was better than going back to the house only to be shoved right back into my room. 

The man stopped in his tracks, turning to face me. He had an irritated look on his face. “No way in hell you’re comin’ with me.” He snapped at me. 

I flinched, my eyes widening as I defensively folded my arms in front of myself. 

“Go home.” He grumbled. 

“I-” 

“Now.” 

“At least let me get you some water before you leave. It’s almost one hundred degrees out today, walking around in those woods without anything to drink will definitely feel like hell.” I insisted. 

The man stood there for a moment, silent as he then drew in a sharp breath. 

“Fine. Hurry up.” 

“Come on.” I gestured for him to follow me. He stood there for a moment, eyeing me. After a few seconds of silence, he began walking toward me, following me back toward the house. As we grew closer, I spotted Rick and Hershel walking from the house, Hershel holding a map in his hand. Taking into consideration how Daryl was acting, I could tell he likely didn’t want to talk to anyone else, so I made it a point to take him in through the back door. We entered the back room, stepping into the house. Daryl was hesitant to come inside. 

He looked around the laundry room, examining every detail of it. I opened a cabinet, grabbing a thermos from it. I unscrewed the cap, turning on the sink faucet. He just stood by the door, watching as I held it under the tap and filled it. 

“So where are you from?” I tried to make some decent small talk with him, as the sink was old and didn’t have a lot of water pressure, taking it’s time to fill the bottle. 

He stayed silent for a moment, eventually answering. “We’re from Atlanta. Had a camp just outside the city.” 

“Can I ask why you left?” 

“Walkers, killed a bunch of our people.” He sighed. 

“Walkers?” I questioned, unsure of what he meant. 

“Those rotting freaks walkin’ around out there.” 

I felt my stomach tighten at the mention. It pained me to hear him refer to those poor people as freaks, as if they weren’t even human. 

“Oh… Well- I-” I bit my lip for a moment, “I’m sorry to hear that. I lost some of my family to them too. I miss them…” The bottle was finally full. I shut off the tap, screwing the lid onto the thermos. I turned to face him, offering the bottle to him. 

“I uh… Sorry to hear that.” His voice was softer than earlier, he didn’t sound as angry. 

“It’s fine. Not something I’d like to have in common, losing people, but it happens…” 

“It does happen, but it sucks.” 

I gave a gentle laugh as he took the bottle from me. “It does suck, indeed.” He gave the slightest hint of a smile as I spoke. “Be safe out there, okay?” 

“Will do. Uh... Thanks for the water.” 

I nodded, “No problem.” 

“You got a name?” He leaned his shoulder on the door frame, eyeing me. 

“I do.” I smiled, “Eleanor Greene.” I reached my hand out, offering to shake his. 

“Daryl.” He shook my hand. It was surprising to see how much larger his hand was than mine, practically taking mine over. His rough, tan skin contrasted with the smooth, pale skin that I had. 

“Pleasure to meet you, Daryl.” I eventually let go of his hand. 

“Pleasure.” He repeated me, nodded as he pulled his hand back. Without another word, he stepped out the door, heading off of the porch and out through the fields. I leaned against the door, twiddling my thumbs as I watched him walk through the tall grass. 

~~~~~

The next morning, I went out to find the group. Jimmy was out there as well. I couldn’t help but be curious about them. 

“So-” I grinned, tucking my hands in my pockets, “A Chupacabra?” 

“Oh- You heard that?” Daryl scoffed, glancing back at me. I had overheard their conversation about going out to look for Sophia. I was thankful for Glenn. He told me everyone’s names, a bit of detail on who they are, where they’ve been. It honestly frightened me to see how tough these people actually were. 

“Sure did. Want to tell me about it?” 

“I was out hunting squirrels, saw the damn thing. Had these crazy red eyes.” 

I gave a short giggle, “Really? You sure it wasn’t just some coyote or something?” 

“You don’t believe in no blood-sucking dog? Those things’ll mess you up real quick.” He had a bit of a smile as we walked out toward the tree line. The horse he had with him followed along with us as he held it’s lead. 

“With everything I’ve seen lately? That’s not too hard to believe.” 

“Damn, girlie. You’re the first one to even consider that I ain’t lying.” He chuckled. 

“I can see why.” I felt my smile grow. Once we got to the tree line, Daryl stopped walking. He glanced over at me, watching as I stopped right with him. 

“You should get back home. Not safe out here.” Daryl pointed out toward the house as he climbed up onto the horse. 

“I know, I know… I could just go with you. You seem to know what you’re doing.” 

“No way. Both of us can’t be on this horse if I find Sophia, gonna have to get her up here to bring her back. Can’t just leave you behind if I need to hurry back.” 

I felt an odd feeling in my chest as he mentioned not leaving me behind. Eventually, I nodded. “Yeah… Just- Be safe.” I reached up, offering him the thermos I had once again filled with water for him. He extended his arm, taking the thermos from me and giving me a nod as a silent thank you. 

After he took the thermos, I waved to him and began walking back to the house. Rather than my usual jeans and t-shirt, I put on a white sundress. It was a bit long, reaching past my knees, but it felt better to wear a dress on a hot day than it did to wear pants and boots. 

Once I arrived back at the house, I was greeted by Beth. She was standing in the doorway. Immediately, I could tell she had been watching me.

“Who’s your little friend?” 

“Don’t start, Beth.” I grinned. 

“Oh, come on! Maggie is already messing around with that other guy, uh- Glenn? She won’t tell me anything so at least you can say something?” Beth pleaded. 

“He’s just a friend. I give him water whenever he leaves. That’s it. I may be older, but I’m not Maggie.” 

“True- never seen you look so happy before.” She teased, “It suits you to never get lucky until the end of the world.” 

“Oh, shut it, Beth. Don’t make me tell dad I caught you and Jimmy making out in the stables.” 

Beth gasped, “You better not! I already paid you not to say anything.” 

“Money ain’t worth shit anymore.” I giggled, “Better find something else worth it.” 

“I-” She stammered, “Fine. I won’t tell daddy you’ve been chatting with that man.” 

“We got ourselves a deal.” I grinned, patting her shoulder as I went past her into the house. When I got inside, I noticed two women in the kitchen. From what Glenn had told me, the skinny one with the long hair was Lori, and the other woman with the short gray hair was Carol. Carol looked rather sweet, which I could only expect from all the good things I heard everyone saying about her missing daughter. I couldn’t even imagine what she must be going through. 

“Oh- What’re y’all doing in here?” 

“We figured we’d make you guys some dinner. Just as a thank you for all the help you’ve given us.” Carol smiled at me. 

Lori stayed quiet, just cleaning some dishes. 

“Oh! That sounds nice. Mind if I help?” I grinned. 

“I’d appreciate it, but it wouldn’t be a thank you if you’re the one doing the work.” 

“No, really. Let me help. I cook almost all the meals around here, I know my way around this kitchen, where everything is.” 

“Alright- Fine. If you insist.” Carol shrugged, giving a short laugh. 

I spent the next few hours cleaning, finding recipes, ingredients, and much more. Carol, Lori, Patricia and Beth did the same. We all had a decent bit of dinner prepared, at this point we were just making extra food. 

"Hey- Uh- Lori, is it?" I continued chopping carrots as I spoke. 

"Yeah? What is it?" The woman took the bits of carrots I chopped, tossing them into a bowl. 

"Uh… So- if you don't mind me asking, could you tell me about Daryl?" I kept my voice down. 

"What about him?" She lowered her voice as well, noticing my anxiousness. 

"I just… I guess I'm just curious." I did my best to be nonchalant. 

"Well, I haven't known him very long. We met a little bit after this all started. He had a brother but uh… that's a long story. Not much I can really say. He's quiet, except for when he's angry. I think Glenn or Dale would be a better person to ask about this." Lori shrugged as I finished with the carrots. I dropped them into the bowl for her, watching as she dumped them into the pot of water. When she didn't say anything else, I let out a heavy sigh, making my way outside. Carol could take the rest from here. 

As I got out onto the front porch, I heard a commotion outside. I made my way off the porch, heading over the group of trees where they had parked the RV and set up tents. Rick, Shane, and a few others were briskly walking out into the field. I began to follow, almost tripping a few times as my dress occasionally caught in sticks and such. As we got closer, I realized it wasn't a walker, it was Daryl. I smiled, waving to him. He looked like he had been to hell and back. Once we all got close, everyone circled around him. 

"Is that Daryl?" Glenn asked. 

Daryl lifted his head, glancing at Rick as he aimed his gun at him. 

"That's the third time you've pointed that thing at my head," Daryl snapped, "You gonna pull the trigger or what?" 

I was about to tell Rick to lower his gun, but we all flinched as a gunshot echoed out. I watched as Daryl fell to the ground, my face growing pale. 

"No!" Rick shouted, turning to face the RV, "No! No!" 

Rick ran to Daryl's side, turning his head to reveal that the bullet, by some miracle, had just grazed the side of his head. I let out a sigh of relief as Rick and Shane helped him off of the ground, beginning to walk him back toward the house. 

"I was kidding," Daryl gruted. 

"Come on-" Rick and Shane pulled his arms over their shoulders. Daryl inevitably passed out, his head hanging limp. 

"Oh my God!" I heard a woman nearly crying, turning my head to see Andrea and Dale running toward us. "Oh my God, is he dead?" 

"Unconscious," Rick answered, "You just grazed him." 

"But look at him, what the hell happened?" Glenn sounded panicked, "He- He's wearing ears!" 

Rick huffed, pulling the string from Daryl's neck as he tucked it into his shirt. "Let's keep that to ourselves." I assumed it was because of my father and Maggie that they wanted to hide it, but it confused me as they seemed to have not noticed I was even there. 

"Guys," Another man called out, Glenn referred to him as T-Dog, "isn't this Sophia's?" He held up a rag doll. 

We all stared at him, most of us having concerned looks on our faces. Afterward, we all rushed Daryl into the house. Hershel got him fixed up for the most part, leaving the rest to me. We got him into a bed, tended to his major wounds. All that was left was cleaning him up and making sure everything was secure. 

Rick eventually asked him about the doll. I was gently patting a damp cloth over his stitches, making sure no dirt got in the wound. 

"I found it washed up on a creek bed right there. She must've dropped it crossing there somewhere." Daryl's voice was a bit raspy.

"Cuts the grid almost in half," Rick began. 

"Yeah, you're welcome." Daryl grumbled. 

"How's he looking?" 

"Well, I didn't know we'd be going through the antibiotics so quickly…" I sighed, wiping mud from his back, "My dad wants to know what happened to the horse?" 

"The one that almost killed me? If it's smart, it left the country." 

"Ah, well…" I grinned. "Daddy calls her Nelly. Meaning, well, Nervous Nelly. He would've told you she'd toss you, I would've too but I assumed you already asked him." 

Rick and Shane both left the room. I could hear Rick speaking with Lori outside the door. I pressed the rag to his skin, causing Daryl to wince. 

"Sorry!" I flinched, pulling the cloth away. 

"It's fine, just watch it." He mumbled, keeping his arm lifted. 

"Will do…" I sighed, patting his arm to get him to roll onto his back. He obliged, rested his arm down onto the bed as I then started wiping the scrapes on his chest. I couldn't help but feel the blood rush to my face both from my fever and the anxious embarrassment. 

"Why' you so red?" Daryl asked, lifting his arms to fold them behind his head. 

I couldn't bring myself to admit I was blushing. Beth was right, my luck was horrible. 

"I have a fever." I spit the words out as quick as I could. 

Daryl tilted his head, "The hell you doing near me for? Don't need you gettin' me sick." 

I took a step back, feeling my body tense. I didn't mean to upset him. It seemed he quickly noticed the look on my face. 

"Oh-" He pushed himself to sit up, "I'm sorry- Didn't mean to come off like that, was just playin' with ya." I could hear the sincerity in his voice. 

"It's fine, never been too good at knowing when someone was just joking." I gave an anxious laugh. Although, it didn't stop the butterflies in my stomach from going on a rampage. Daryl opened his mouth to speak, but stopped when I suddenly turned on my heel and hunched over the nearest trash bin, vomiting into it. I coughed, taking a deep breath. However, the breath was cut short as I continued retching into the bin. I felt a hand graze the side of my neck, causing me to throw myself to the side. When I looked up, I saw Daryl standing beside me, seeming he was trying to hold my hair back for me. 

"Was just tryin' to-" 

I interrupted him, "I-I'm sorry- just- you scared me." 

He didn't say anything, just nervously staring at me. I wanted to say something else, anything else to break the anxious tension, but I couldn't as I hunched back over the trash can, retching into it once again. After a few seconds, I felt the hand graze my neck again, my hair being carefully moved from my shoulders and held back like a ponytail. 

"Just uh…" I heard his voice behind me, "Get it all out, whatever helps." 

I couldn't help but feel embarrassed as I threw up another time, my eyes watering. It wasn't long before the door opened, Alex standing there. I was going to speak to him, but I couldn't as I began coughing. 

"Hey-" Alex snapped, "Get your hands off of her." He paced over, smacking Daryl's hand from my hair. By now I was just panting into the trash can, desperately praying that I wouldn't throw up anymore. 

"Just holdin' her hair. Don't you see her throwin' her guts up?" Daryl scoffed. 

"Just keep your hands off of her. Not your lady, not your problem." Alex aggressively pushed his hand to Daryl's chest, knocking him back. Daryl looked as if he was ready to fight Alex, and Alex only returned the look. 

"Daryl, just lay back down-" I gagged, "I'll get Patricia to come finish up." 

Daryl stepped back. He didn't calm down, but he kept a lid on it at my words. He immediately recognized the situation. Alex reached down, grabbing my shoulder. 

"You need to be in bed." He snapped at me, his hand tightly gripping my shoulder, the other grabbing my arm as he pulled me to stand. He guided me out the door, bringing me upstairs to my bedroom. Once we got in the door, he slammed it behind us, pushing me into the wall. I yelped, lowering my head. 

Alex stepped toward me, cupping his hand around my jaw as he spoke to me through gritted teeth. "You stay the hell away from him. Don't act like I didn't see it. You don't talk to him. You don't look at him. You don't go near him. If they ask you to treat him, you say you feel sick and you leave." 

I nodded, my eyes watering as tears fell down my face. "I- Okay… okay! I'm sorry-" I gasped, shaking. He squeezed my jaw a bit, his fingers pressing into my neck. Alex turned my head, making me meet his eyes for a second before he finally let me go. I gasped the second he let me go, lowering my head as I made my way over to the bed. I took off my socks and shoes, burying myself in the blankets. Alex pulled the door open, leaving the room. 

Not long afterwards, Beth entered the room. She knew what happened the second she saw him pull me up the stairs. "Ellie?" She called out as she sat at the foot of the bed. 

"You okay?" 

"Yeah- I'm fine… I'm just- just tired. Threw up…" I mumbled, trying not to let her know I was on the verge of tears. 

"Ellie… I-" Beth placed her hand on my leg, "It's okay. Dinner is gonna be ready soon. Are you gonna come down or do you want me to bring you a plate?" 

"If you could bring one up I'd really appreciate it…" 

"Okay," Beth nodded, "I will. I'll let daddy know you aren't feeling well." 

"Thank you, Beth." 

She stood from the bed, leaving the room. 

~~~~~

For the next couple of days, I remained in my room. Beth asked Glenn to pick up some books when he went into town so I'd have something new to read. I tucked myself away, only leaving to shower, go to the bathroom, or to grab food. Despite what Alex said, I still filled the thermos up with water for Daryl. When Daryl left the house to go back to the tents with his group, it pained me. I didn't even know him that well, but I still felt an ache in my chest from it. _Why do I feel this way? I'm with Alex. I can't do that to him._

Beth, Maggie, Hershel, Patricia and even Jimmy stayed away from me. They made sure I had time alone, just me and my books. The only time I wasn't alone was when Alex came in at night so he could sleep, but even then he would spend some nights on the couch. 

I had my nose buried into a book, reading page after page until I heard shouting. When I glanced out my window, I saw the group sprinting toward the barn. My heart dropped when I realized they saw Hershel and Rick with the walkers- no- people. By the time I got to the front porch, I heard the echoes of endless gunshots. I sprinted toward the barn, watching as they killed all of the people coming from the barn. When I realized the majority of them were taking hits no person could survive, I realized that the things this group had been saying were right. These aren't people. They're things. They're dangerous. They're dead. When I saw that last shot go off, the little girl hitting the ground, my stomach clenched. No one had seen me arrive but they certainly noticed the second they heard me stumble off to the side, falling to my hands and knees in the grass as I vomited. 

Alex was standing with Hershel. He scoffed the second he saw me. Whenever he saw me ill, he always made some sort of comment that I was weak. I trembled, unable to look at the bloody mess in front of that barn. I could hear Carol crying, and not long afterwards I could hear Beth as well. I knew she had found our mother, and Shawn. This didn't help anything, only making me retch up anything I'd eaten once again. 

I whipped my head around to see Beth screaming, the body of our mother trying to attack her. The men pulled him off of her. Just as quickly as it began, it ended as that blonde woman, Andrea, swung a scythe into her head. The sight wasn't something I could bear to see. I covered my eyes, balling up on the ground. I wanted to cry, I needed to cry, but I didn't. My head throbbed as I held back the tears. 

In the background, I could hear the majority of the group arguing with each other, mostly Shane screaming at dad. I clutched the fabric of my sweater, trembling. My mind could only play a few things on repeat. 

_They're gone… dead. They weren't sick. Nobody was sick. They were just dead. No one is safe. I'm not safe. Maggie. Beth. Dad. Patricia. Jimmy. Even Alex. None of them are safe._


	2. The Breakdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group suffers a great loss before making a big decision. Just as they begin settling in, all hell breaks loose.

By the next morning, my fever had finally passed.

Despite feeling better physically, the pain of what I had seen the day before was still lingering. I could barely get out of bed that morning until Maggie had told me what was going on with Beth. I had tried to talk to her, but Alex wouldn’t let me. He didn’t want her to ‘rub off on me.’ I made it a point to ask Maggie, Lori, or whoever else was in the kitchen, away from Alex, if Beth was alright. From what I heard, she wasn’t doing too well. 

On top of that, Rick and Shane had brought back a man who had apparently shot at them, and they were off dealing with him. Thankful I was no longer sick, I didn’t throw up when that tight feeling in my stomach had hit me once again, thinking of what may happen to the boy they had brought back. I wanted to go and talk it out, see what we could do, but neither of them would listen and there was no way Alex was going to let me speak to them. Since I was unable to help out there, I did my best around the farm. I fed the chickens, cleaned up the kitchen, made lunch for everyone, but I didn’t stop there. I ended up cleaning the entire house and part of the stables. When I was finally done, I took the time to make some food for that group. 

I got myself dressed in some fresh clothes, pulling on some jeans and a green blouse. I passed Maggie going up the stairs. 

“Ellie?” She turned, looking down the stairs at me. 

I shifted on my heel, “Yeah?” I glanced up toward her. 

“You feeling alright? If you don’t, then you don’t need to be leavin’ the house. Beth is already in bed, can’t have you getting worse too.” 

“I checked, my fever is gone now, so-” I sighed, “I should be fine. I’m gonna bring some food out to them.” 

Maggie nodded, “You be careful, okay?” Her voice softened. 

“Make sure Beth is okay.” I nodded to her, turning back to go down the stairs. She made her way over to Beth’s room, and I headed to the front foyer to go out the door. Once I got to their camp, I saw Andrea leaving a tent, hearing Daryl’s voice as it seemed they were speaking to each other. I carried the basket full of sandwiches and fruit over to the tent, offering a peach to Andrea as I passed her. She happily took it, then making her way over to the RV. I waited until she was a good bit away before I went toward Daryl’s tent, making sure to say something before going in. 

“I- Uh… Daryl?” I called out. 

“What?” He spoke up. 

“I have some food. Just peaches and sandwiches, but-” 

“You comin’ in or what?” Daryl raised his voice a bit. 

I flinched, not expecting it. I carefully stepped into the tent, lowering my head to go inside as I glanced at him. He had a hint of surprise on his face, like he wasn’t expecting to see me. I reached into the basket, picking up a sandwich I had wrapped in foil. 

“Just turkey and cheese.” I smiled, offering it to him, “Does that sound alright?” 

“Damn, y’all still got that?” Daryl sat up, taking the sandwich. He shifted so one leg was off the side of the cot, the other folded on as he peeled the foil open. 

“We have a lot more than you’d think.” I let out a short laugh, taking a seat in the folding chair beside his cot. After I had sat down, I pulled an apple from the basket, biting into it. Daryl did the same with his sandwich, looking at it like I’d just given him a gourmet meal. 

“It’s good, best dinner I had since Atlanta.” He nodded, wiping his mouth with the backside of his hand. 

“That’s right, Atlanta…” I nodded for a moment, “Well, what’s it like in the city? I haven’t been out there since I went to college, and even then I lived more toward the outskirts rather than some apartment.” 

“Not much. Kinda shit if you ask me. Too many people.” He shrugged, resting his elbow on his knee as he took another bite of the sandwich. “Where you been? Haven’t seen you out the house in a while.” 

“Oh-” I awkwardly chuckled, “Just… Got sick.” 

“You were already sick, weren’t you?” 

“Yeah, I just…” 

“Don’t worry ‘bout it.” He glanced out the entrance to his tent, “It’s all good. Don’t gotta say nothing.” Daryl then looked at me, his blue eyes meeting mine. 

“…Thank you.” I kept my voice down, barely able to get the words out. I couldn’t help but love the warm feeling I got from him realizing I didn’t want to talk about it. However, it didn’t take long before the warmth left me, the realization that he knew what was going on. 

_How did he know?_

_Is it that obvious?_

We sat there for a while, just eating, talking about our day. Once ie started getting dark, Daryl stood from the cot. I tilted my head back, curious as to why he was getting up. Before I could even ask, he answered. 

“You should go home. Not safe out here after dark.” Daryl held his hand out, standing next to the chair. 

I sat there for a moment, a bit surprised he’d offered. From what little information I could get from Maggie, they described Daryl as a loner, someone cold, distant. So when he offered to take me home, even though it wasn’t that far of a walk, it was definitely surprising to hear. I reached out, taking his hand as I stood. His rough hand wrapped around mine, steadying me as I stood in the tent. He let go of it once I was standing, stepping out of the tent, to which I followed him. 

“Glenn!” Daryl called Glenn over to us, “Come get this basket. She brought us some food.” 

“Really?” Glenn sounded rather surprised to hear I had brought them some food. I knew Maggie had brought them peaches and jerky before, but I knew she was doing it to keep Glenn quiet. I wanted to make sure they were eating since I knew Daryl was injured, they had a child there, and on top of that, Lori was pregnant. I couldn’t sleep with knowing there were people here in that condition who didn’t have that much food. 

I passed the basket to Glenn, “Some turkey and cheese sandwiches, apples, peaches, more jerky. It’s not much-” 

“It’s more than enough,” Glenn gave a nervous grin, “Thanks.” 

I smiled, “It’s no problem. If you need anything else just ask me. I know my daddy doesn’t really want us talkin’ to you guys, but I can’t just ignore the condition you guys are in. Pregnant, injured. There’s a kid here, for Christ’s sake.” 

Glenn nodded, “Well- We’re grateful enough that he’s even letting us stay here. After what Shane did, I was sure he was going to shoot us himself.” 

I gave an anxious laugh, “Well, I wouldn’t let him. Maggie likes you too much, and he-” I pointed to Daryl, “-definitely wouldn’t make it out there in that condition. He needs time to rest.” 

“Don’t need to ‘time to rest.’ If anything it’s your sorry ass who needs a nap.” Daryl joked, beginning to walk toward the house as he waved Glenn off. I followed behind him, giving Glenn a nod as we left. 

“You sure looked like you needed a nap when I came in there.” I giggled. 

“Don’t need no nap.” He scoffed, but he still had a slight grin on his face, “Thank you, though. Sandwich was pretty good.” 

“You already told me, don’t gotta repeat yourself.” I patted his shoulder as we arrived at the front steps to the porch. “Thank you, Daryl.” I smiled at him. 

Daryl nodded, “Night.” He met my eyes for a moment, then turning on his heel as he made his way back to camp. I watched for a moment, waiting until he was a few feet away before I turned to go back inside the house. I made my way upstairs, seeing Alex sitting at the foot of my bed. 

“Close the door.” He snapped at me. 

I flinched, reluctantly closing the door. Afterward, I made my way over, standing beside the bed as I waited for him to speak. 

“Where did you go?” 

“I was just bringing some food to that group. There’s a kid, one of them is pregnant-” 

He interrupted me, “I don’t give a damn.” Alex stood, his height compared to mine only making me feel so small and weak around him. 

“You went to go see him, didn’t you?” 

I stayed silent, just staring right into his eyes, frozen in place. 

“Answer me!” He shouted. I flinched as he yelled, knowing Hershel or Maggie likely heard him. Alex was always careful to avoid yelling. It astounded me how well he was able to keep a mask over everything he was doing, how he was able to just flip a switch and act like nothing was wrong. 

“I- Yes, but it was just to bring them food-” I was cut off when he swung his hand, the backside of his hand hitting my cheek as my head whipped to the side. 

“I told you to stay away from him. You did this.” He lowered his voice, noticing he’d been rather loud and knowing he had to keep it down. 

“It was just some food. I don’t see how I’m hurting anything.” 

“I saw him walking with you up to the house. I’m not stupid.” Alex didn’t say much else after that. He just walked off and left the room, but I grew tense as I heard him lock the door to my bedroom. This wasn’t the first time he had locked me in, but he still didn’t do it very often. I took a deep breath, doing what I could to calm myself down as I kicked off my shoes, crawling into bed. It didn’t take long for me to drift off to sleep. All of the stress from Alex combined with how tired I was from all of the work I had done today made it quite easy for me to fall asleep.  
~~~~~

By the next morning, Maggie had told me what happened. I could already sense something had happened judging by the sad looks on everyone’s faces. I didn’t know Dale for very long, we’d only spoken once or twice, but it still hurt to think about what had happened. When everything had fallen, I knew there were going to be bad times, horrible things were going to happen. I just didn’t expect to have them happen so quickly. Maggie waited for me to get dressed and ready to go, as we were having a funeral for Dale. 

We all made our way out to one of the fields, where Rick and his group had already dug a grave for Dale, surrounding it with stones and rocks. Once we were all gathered around, he began speaking for Dale. I lowered my head, staring at the grass. I couldn’t bring myself to look at their faces. 

“Dale could get under your skin. He sure got under mine. Because he wasn’t afraid to say exactly what he thought, how he felt. That kind of honesty is rare,” Rick paused, “-and brave. Whenever I’d make a decision, I’d look at Dale. He’d be looking back at me with that look her had. We’ve all seen it one time or another. I couldn’t always read him but he could read us. He saw people for who they were, he knew things about us–” Rick sniffled for a moment, “-the truth, who we really are. In the end, he was talking about losing our humanity. He said this group was broken. The best way to honor him is to unbreak it, set aside our differences and pull together, stop feeling sorry for ourselves, take control of our lives, our safety, our future. We’re not broken, we’re gonna prove him wrong.” When Rick paused again, I finally looked up. Carl had tears running down his cheeks, and Andrea looked like hell. From what I knew, Andrea was like a daughter to Dale. I couldn’t imagine how she felt. “From now on, we’re gonna do it his way. That is how we honor Dale.”

After we held the funeral, everyone began making their way back to the vehicles to head back to the house. Alex didn’t show up. Whenever we would have a big argument, he’d usually go off and walk through the fields on his own. I didn’t mind it, but after the outbreak, I couldn’t help but grow anxious that something might have gotten him in the fields. I looked around, spotting Daryl making his way back to the house on foot. I quickly paced over, catching up with him. 

“Daryl!” I called out when I got within a few feet of him. 

He didn’t respond. 

I lightly jogged until I was beside him. “Daryl?” 

“What’d you want?” He barked, his voice strained. I flinched, but I knew he was likely stressed by the loss of his friend. 

“I-” I took a deep breath, “I’m sorry about Dale.” 

“Nothin’ to be sorry about. Couldn’t do nothin’ for him.” Daryl kept his head down, but he kept walking. Once he stopped talking, he slowed down, allowing me to keep up. 

“You know what I mean. I heard what happened. I just… You’re the one who had to do it…?” I lowered my voice, knowing it was a sensitive subject. 

“What about it?” 

“I’m sorry. I- I know that hurt. I wish I could’ve been there, I could’ve-” 

“You couldn’t have done shit.” Daryl stopped walking, turning to face me. He got close to my face, his eyes meeting mine. “None of us could. That dead bastard ripped his gut open, and we couldn’t do shit but sit there and watch while he choked on his own blood.” 

I froze in place, not expecting him to get upset with me. “Daryl, that’s-” 

“That’s what? The hell am I even listening to you for? You don’t know nothin’. Can’t even realize you’re with a piece of shit who don’t know any better than to put his hands on a woman. How is someone as stupid as you supposed to help Dale? You can’t even help yourself.” He shouted at me, only making me feel smaller. By the time he stopped, I was trembling, my hands defensively lifted in front of me as I felt tears welling up in my eyes. Daryl immediately noticed what he’d done. I could see it on his face. However, he didn’t say a word, just turning and once again walking toward the house at a brisk pace. 

I stood there for a few moments, just processing what had just happened. When I began walking back to the house, I took into mind what he had said. He’s right. I can’t do anything for myself, so why would I be able to help anyone else?

By the time I got back to the house, Rick was speaking to Hershel, Maggie, everyone. I didn’t get there in time to hear what they were saying, but I wouldn’t have been able to listen anyways. My head was aching as I tried to think of what had happened. I entered the house, rushing up to my bedroom. Once I got there, I found Beth moving her things into my room. 

“Beth? What’re you doing?” I wiped my eyes, trying to compose myself. 

“We’re letting those people move in. Winter’s comin’ and they can’t be out in the cold, so I’m lettin’ some of ‘em stay in my room. Daddy said it’d be fine to share with you.” 

I stood there for a moment, pushing my hair out of my face as I eyed the boxes. 

“Ellie, is everything okay?” Bethe lowered her voice, keeping her eye on the door as she made her way over to me. “Did Alex yell at you again?” 

“Beth-” I gasped, trying not to cry, “He hit me.” 

Beth’s eyes widened. “He did _what?_ Ellie, you need to tell Dad. I know this isn’t the first time, and I’m not about to let him keep doin’ that to you.” 

“Please don’t say anything.” I grabbed her shoulders. “You can’t say anything. Please, just- Please…” I took a deep breath. “I’ll deal with it, I just…” 

“No, you won’t, Ellie.” Beth looked up at me, meeting my eyes. “It’s been three years, I can’t let you do this anymore.” 

“Beth, I promise you, I’ll do something about it. Just- please, give me a little more time. Okay?” I grabbed her hands, lifting them as I held them between both of mine. 

Beth stared at me for a moment, like she was searching in my eyes for something. “…Fine. A week. I’ll wait a week.” 

“Thank you.” I gasped, still desperately trying to hold back the tears as I wrapped my arms around her. Beth hugged me in return, patting my back. 

“Promise?”

“I promise, Beth.” I let go of her, taking a step back. 

Afterward, Beth and I got my bedroom set up for the both of us. We agreed that Alex would start sleeping downstairs with the men, while Beth shared the bed with me. When we got finished, we headed downstairs. I grew worried as I saw the house was completely empty besides me and Beth. I made my way outside, seeing everyone near the shed. 

“Maggie! Dad!” I shouted as I jogged over, Beth following me. 

Once we got close, I stopped beside Maggie. “What’s going on?” Beth asked. Hershel glanced over at the group, watching as they discussed the situation. 

“That boy got out.” Hershel pointed toward the shed. 

“The cuffs are still hooked, he must’ve slipped ‘em,” Rick spoke as he stepped out of the shed. 

“Is that possible?” Carol looked into the door with disbelief. 

“It is if you’ve got nothing to lose.” Andrea stepped out of the door, walking past Rick. 

“The door was secure from the outside.” Hershel began closing the door to the shed. I walked closer, looking over the area. 

We all jumped as we heard shouting coming from the tree line. I whipped my head around, only to see Shane storming out of the woods, blood running down his face from the bridge of his nose. 

“Rick!” He yelled, “Rick!” 

Lori stepped up and Rick began walking towards Shane, “What happened?” Lori shouted. 

“He’s armed!” Shane hollered, “He’s got my gun!” 

“Are you okay?” Carl called to Shane. 

“I’m fine, little bastard just snuck up on me,” Shane answered, “He clocked me in the face.” 

“Alright, Hershel, T-Dog, get everybody back in the house,” Rick instructed as he pointed to them. “Glenn, Daryl, come with us.” 

“Glenn!” I called out, grabbing his arm. He turned, glancing at me.

“Yeah?” 

“Stay here with Maggie.” I pointed to Maggie as she walked with Hershel. 

“Sure thing,” Glenn spoke with a bit of anxious sarcasm as he wasted no time walking over to Maggie. I took Glenn’s place, making my way over to Daryl as I followed him and Rick. 

“T, I’m gonna need that gun,” Shane pointed to T-Dog. 

“Just let him go,” Carol’s voice was high like she was worried, “that was the plan, wasn’t it? To just let him go?” 

“The plan was to cut him loose far away from here,” Rick walked back toward Carol, “Not on our front step with a gun.” 

“Don’t go out there!” Carol whined, “Y’all don’t know what can happen!” 

“Get everybody back in the house,” Rick commanded, “lock all the doors and stay put!” 

Rick, Daryl, Shane, and I all trailed into the woods. Rick cocked a gun as we went through the tree line. It didn’t take me long to realize I didn’t even have a weapon on me. 

“I saw him head up through the trees,” Shane pointed, “-that way before I blacked out. I’m not sure how long.” 

“He couldn’t have gotten far,” Rick looked around, “He’s hobbled, exhausted.” 

“-And he’s armed…” I added anxiously, but it went unnoticed. 

Rick turned to Daryl, “Can you track him?” 

“No,” Daryl looked around on the ground, which was covered with dead leaves, “I don’t see nothing.” 

“Hey, look,” Shane sounded stressed which was understandable at the moment, but I couldn’t help but feel off about it, “There ain’t no use in tracking him, okay? He went that way. We need to pair up, we spread out, we just chase him down. That’s it.”

“The kid weighs a buck-25 soaking wet,” Daryl eyed Shane, “You trying to tell us he got the jump on you?” 

“I say a rock pretty much evens those odds, wouldn’t you?” Shane scoffed as he looked at Daryl. 

“Alright, knock it off,” Rick raised his hands defensively, “You and Eleanor start heading toward the right, me and Shane are going up the left. Just remember that Randall isn’t the only threat out there. Watch out for each other.” 

Daryl and Rick parted ways. I followed up behind Daryl while Rick and Shane went off in the other direction. For the first couple of minutes, we were completely silent. When it began getting dark, I could feel the anxiety building within me. I didn’t have a weapon, I had no idea how to kill one of those… things. I was helpless. 

“Sorry,” Daryl broke the silence. 

“What?” I lifted my head, not expecting him to speak. 

“Said I’m sorry,” He repeated himself. 

“For what?” 

“That stuff I said. Shouldn’t have said that to ya.” Daryl spoke with a low voice, being wary as to not be heard, in case anyone was nearby. 

“I-” My breath hitched, “It’s okay, I get it…” 

“S’not okay. Shouldn’t be talking to you like that, and you shouldn’t be letting people talk to you like that,” Daryl turned on a flashlight, shining it over the dried leaves on the ground, “Need to stand up for yourself.” 

“Daryl, I just-” 

“Hold up.” He brought the flashlight up, shining it onto a tree, “There’s some fresh blood on the tree here.” He examined it for a moment before moving the flashlight to shine it into the ground. “Got some more tracks, looks like they’re walking in tandem.” 

I followed Daryl as he slowly walked forward. Although, I practically jumped as I hear the sound of an animal calling out in the forest. I turned my head to the side, only to feel my body slam into something. When I looked, Daryl had turned around, seeming I’d run into his back. 

“I- Sorry-” I apologized quickly, my eyes a bit wide. 

“It’s fine-” He turned back, shining the light back to the leaves, “There was a little bit of a dust-up right here.”

“What’d you mean?” I wrapped my arms around myself, the sweater not doing much for me. 

“I mean something went down,” Daryl continued walking. 

“This just-” I sighed, “It feels off.” 

“Had a little trouble,” Daryl leaned down, shining the light over what I assumed was Randall’s blindfold. After we both heard some rustling in the not-so-far distance, we both darted to the side, getting close to a tree. I pressed my back to it, holding my breath. Daryl did the same, readying his crossbow. I flinched as I heard him give a quick whistle, then tossing me the flashlight. I struggling to catch it, fumbling with it for a moment before I got a grip on it. Daryl glanced over, spotting a figure walking toward us. He glanced at me, to which I understood I needed to stay still. 

Once the figure got close enough, I shined the light on it, expecting to see Randall. However, I let out a squeal as I saw the white, dead eyes of a walker. It grabbed my shoulders, baring its teeth as it tried to bite me. I screamed, falling onto my back as it growled and snarled in my face. Randall abruptly fell limp as the point of an arrow went through his head. I tensed up, my face feeling cold as all of the blood drained out of it. 

It wasn’t long before Daryl pulled the body off of me, rolling it onto its back. He dropped his crossbow, kneeling beside me as he looked at my arms and face. 

“Did it get you?” His voice was raspy, his breathing a bit fast. 

“No-” I gasped, my heart pounding in my chest, “-no, it didn’t…” 

I tensed up once again as I suddenly felt Daryl wrap his arms around me, pressing me into him as my chin rested on his shoulder. He held me for a moment, then quickly letting go and standing. Without another word, he took my hand, pulling me to my feet. 

“So- That’s Randall?” I worriedly looked at the body, “He got bit?” 

Daryl kneeled beside him, looking over Randall, “His neck is broke,” He turned his head to the side, then glancing up at me. He rolled Randall over, checking beneath his shirt and the lower half of his pants. “He’s got no bites.” 

“Not any we can see…” I kept my distance from the body, keeping my arms wrapped around myself. I was still panting, anxiety from the attack still with me. 

“No-” Daryl shined the light on him, “I’m telling ya, he died from this.” He pointed to Randall’s neck. 

I looked at him in disbelief, “How’d he turn? I thought you only turn if you get bit?” 

Daryl glanced at me, and I met his gaze. We stared at each other for a moment, trying to piece together how Randall could’ve turned. Without another word, Daryl pulled the arrow from Randall’s skull, beginning to walk off into the woods. I followed behind him, my breathing still heavy. 

“Daryl?” I called out. He didn’t answer, just hastily walking back toward the house. 

“Daryl!” I called out, only for him to whip around, grabbing my shoulder, his other hand going over my mouth. 

“Shut up!” He spoke in a low tone, but it was quick, like a shout with the volume of a whisper. My eyes went wide as he stared right into mine. “We don’t know how many more of them things are out here. Don’t scream.” He slowly pulled his hand from my mouth, carefully letting go of my shoulder. 

“I’m so-” 

“Stop apologizing.” He snapped at me, taking a few steps back. Daryl turned, walking back toward the house. I followed along, just keeping my head down as we made our way back. I yelped as I heard a gunshot in the distance. Daryl flinched a bit, but it wasn’t too noticeable. Despite the sound, we kept walking. 

Eventually, we got back to the house. Daryl opened the door, and I followed him inside. 

“Rick and Shane ain’t back?” Daryl asked, lowering his crossbow as he stood behind the couch. 

“No,” Lori answered. 

“We heard a shot,” I glanced at Lori. 

“They probably just found Randall.” Lori shrugged. 

Daryl shook his head, “We found him.” 

“Is he back in the shed?” Maggie asked as she stepped forward. 

“He turned,” I shivered, remembering how he attacked me, “He’s a walker.” 

“Did you find the one that bit him?” Hershel asked Daryl, nodding his head toward him. 

“No, I-” My eyes were watering, fear still running through me. When I started talking, Daryl turned his head toward me, noticing. 

“There ain’t another walker. Randall didn’t get bit,” Daryl answered for me, “His neck was broke.” 

“So he fought back.” Patricia lifted her head. 

“Shane’s tracks were right on top of Randall’s,” Daryl began, “-and Shane ain’t no tracker. So he didn’t come up behind him, they were together.”

“Would you please get back out there so you can find Rick and Shane?” Lori huffed, “Just find out what on earth is going on?” 

“You got it.” Daryl nodded to her, making his way out. Lori thanked him as he left. I turned on my heel, heading out to follow him. Maggie grabbed my arm, stopping me. 

“Ellie?” She sounded worried, “What happened out there?” 

I noticed she was looking at my forehead, so I assumed some of Randall’s blood had gotten on me when Daryl shot him. 

“It’s nothing… Randall- The walker, jumped on me. It didn’t get me-” I glanced at Hershel, then at Maggie again, “Daryl shot him. I’m fine.” 

“Let’s just get you cleaned up.” She brought me into the kitchen where she grabbed a hand towel, running some water on it. Maggie pressed it to my forehead, starting to clean the blood from my face. When we noticed everyone going outside, Maggie set the towel down on the counter and we both made our way outside. 

“What’s going on?” I asked as we stepped out the door. 

“Patricia, kill the lights.” Hershel looked to Patricia. Once I looked past Hershel, I saw it. A massive group of walkers, hundreds of them, all of them heading straight for the house. 

“I’ll go grab the guns.” Andrea nodded as she headed back into the house. 

“Maybe they’re just passing,” Glenn whined, sounding worried, “Like the herd on the highway? Should we just go inside?” 

Daryl scoffed, “Not unless there’s a tunnel downstairs I don’t know about,” I tensed, watching as they continued marching toward the house, “A herd that size would tear this house apart.” 

“Carl’s gone!” I heard Lori rush out of the house, “I left him upstairs, I can’t find him anywhere.” 

“He might be hiding?” Glenn suggested. 

“No-” Lori took a deep breath, “He’s supposed to be upstairs. I’m not leaving without Carl” 

“We won’t leave him,” Carol grabbed Lori’s arm, guiding her into the house, “We’re gonna look again, and we’re gonna find him.” 

Andrea came out of the house with a duffel bag, to which she and Maggie began passing out guns. I hesitantly took a pistol, unsure of how to use it. Even then, I took it anyway. When Maggie passed one to Glenn, he looked rather surprised. 

“Maggie?” Glenn glanced at her. 

“When you grow up country, you pick up a thing or two,” Maggie spat the words out as she held up a shotgun. 

“I got the number–” Daryl glanced out at the herd, “Guns ain’t no use.” 

“You can go if you want,” Hershel prepped a shotgun, glancing at Daryl as he did so. Daryl got a bit of surprise on his face. 

“You gonna take on that whole herd?” 

“We have guns,” Hershel lifted his head, “We have cars.” 

“We kill as many as we can,” Andrea began loading another gun, “-and we’ll use the cars to lead the rest of them away from the farm.” 

“Are you serious?” Daryl eyed Hershel. 

“This is my farm. I’ll die here,” Hershel looked out at the herd once again, then walking off. 

“Alright,” Daryl sighed, “It’s as good a night as any.” Daryl then hopped the railing, but I stayed behind with Hershel. I tensed up as I lifted the gun, still unsure of how to properly use it. Shane taught Patricia, Beth, and me a while back, but I was hardly any good. In the distance, I watched as the barn burst into flames, the vehicles circling around as they fired shots. 

“Hershel!” I heard Lori screaming behind us, “Hershel! Hershel, it’s time to go!” 

“Come on, now!” Carol shouted as well. 

I turned, glancing at Hershel one last time before running toward the group. 

“Hershel! Hershel!” Lori kept shouting, but Hershel didn’t move. I ran with Carol, Lori, Patricia, and Beth, but it wasn’t long before a few of the walkers got a hold of Patricia. They dragged her to the ground, biting into her as she screamed. Carol, Lori, and Beth began running off, Lori practically having to drag Beth away from Patricia. By now, everything was just white noise, my body moving out of pure instinct. I stumbled, finding myself cornered in front of an old shed as a blue truck pulled up. I watched as Andrea hopped out, firing a few rounds into the walkers. 

“I- Andrea!” I shouted as I saw a walker coming up close behind her. She turned, firing a round as its body fell limp on top of her, knocking her to the ground. 

Once again, instinct carried me away. I ran off, regrettably leaving Andrea behind. I felt tears pouring down my face as I ran through the dark field, dodging every walker that came close. One of them seemed to have come out of nowhere, grabbing my wrist. I screamed at the top of my lungs. Without a second thought, I lifted the gun, shooting it in the head. The walker dropped to the ground as blood splattered onto my face. I burst into tears, shaking the walker from my arm as I continued running, feeling my body slow as I couldn’t help but grow tired. Several walkers trailed behind me, a few of them being just two or three feet away. To my relief, I heard the loud engine of a motorcycle coming up the road. It was Daryl. He shouted to me. 

“Eleanor! Come on!” He stopped the bike, firing a shot past me to hit one of the walkers, “I ain’t got all day!” 

I ran to the bike, climbing over the back as I grabbed onto Daryl. My arms wrapped around his torso, holding onto him for dear life as he sped off. Just like that, it was as if all my stress had simply melted away. I buried my head against his back, closing my eyes as I felt the cold wind against my skin. All of the noise tuned out, the only thing I could hear was my own heartbeat as my heart pounded in my chest. 

We drove for quite a while until I heard another vehicle. I finally opened my eyes, spotting the blue truck that Lori, Beth, and Carol had gotten into, along with the green car Maggie and Glenn were in. I let out a sigh of relief, glancing up as I saw Daryl’s backside. As he weaved the bike through the wrecked cars, I saw Hershel, Rick, Alex, and Carl. 

“Dad!” I called out, feeling a smile spread over my face. 

Everyone parked their cars, running out, and greeting their friends and family without hesitation. I ran to Hershel and Maggie, throwing my arms around them. Not long after, Beth joined in as well. I suddenly felt another set of arms around me, pulling me to the side into a tight hug. It was Alex. He was covered in a bit of blood, a gun in his hand. 

“Alex-” I lifted my head, looking up at him. I felt Beth’s eyes on me as Alex leaned down and kissed me. 

“Baby-” His voice cracked a bit, “-I thought they got you.” He hugged me again, tighter this time. I glanced at Beth, then spotting Daryl. Beth had a look of doubt, while Daryl had a similar look, but… there was a hint of what I could only assume was anger. 

“Where were you?” I asked, glancing up at Alex once again. He immediately grew irritated, his smile fading, as if it meant nothing. 

_“Where was I?”_ He grunted, but he kept his voice low enough as to not draw attention. To my rescue, Beth ran to me, pulling me from his arms as she hugged me. 

“Ellie! Oh my goodness!” Beth cried out in a happy, yet worried tone. She always knew how to play sweet and innocent when she needed to, “I thought they got you! I saw you surrounded and-" 

"I know, Bee.” I grinned, kissing her forehead, “I survived. I knew I had to make it back to you, cause you wouldn’t last a day without me.” I joked, pinched her cheeks lovingly. Beth smacked my hands from her cheeks, giggling. Alex, on the other hand, stared me down. I could feel his eyes burning a hole into me from a mile away. 

“Where’d you find everyone?” Rick glanced at Daryl. 

“Well, those guys’ tail lights zigzagging all over the road–” Daryl stood from his bike, “-figured he had to be asian, driving like that." 

Glenn chuckled, "Good one." 

"Where’s the rest of us?” Daryl asked, looking around. I looked at the group as well, noticing a few people were missing. Shane, Jimmy, Patricia, and Andrea. I had already known about Andrea, but the rest of them going missing only caused me to worry. 

“We’re the only ones who made it so far,” Rick tilted his head back a bit. 

“Shane?” Lori stood up beside Carl. Rick shook his head, to which Lori looked off to the side in disappointment. 

“Andrea?” Glenn spoke up. 

“She saved me-” I stepped away from Beth, now standing beside Rick, “-I saw a walker on top of her, but after that I lost her…” I couldn’t admit that I had just run away, leaving Andrea like a coward. 

T-Dog answered for me, “We saw her go down." 

"And what about Patricia?” Hershel glanced at Rick. Beth reached over, squeezing his hand. 

“They got her too,” Beth whimpered, “They got her right in front of me, I was–” She gasped, “I was holdin’ onto her, Daddy. She just–”

As Beth started crying, Hershel silenced her by pulling her into a hug. Maggie patted her back, standing beside her. I just stood there, frozen. My body tensed as all of the trauma and stress of what had just happened washed over me. 

“What about Jimmy? Did you see Jimmy?” Beth asked, glancing at Maggie, then Rick. 

“He was in the R.V. It got overrun.” Rick shook his head. Beth began crying again, to which Hershel hugged her tighter. 

“You definitely saw Andrea?” Carol asked, looking around. 

“There were walkers everywhere,” Lori looked to Carol. 

“Did you see her?” Carol repeated. 

Everyone fell silent, until Daryl spoke. “I’m gonna go back." 

"No,” Rick stopped him at his bike. 

“We can’t just leave her.” Daryl protested. 

Lori sighed, “We don’t even know if she’s there." 

"She isn’t there,” Rick continued for Lori, “She isn’t. She’s somewhere else or she’s dead. There’s no way to find her." 

"So we aren’t even going to try to find her?” Glenn tilted his head, sounding irritated. 

“We need to keep moving,” Rick glanced at a walker coming up between the cars, “There’s walkers all over the place." 

T-Dog lifted his head as he leaned on the door, "We should head east." 

"Gotta stay off the main roads,” Daryl continued, “The bigger the road, the more walkers. More assholes like this one, I got him.” Daryl made his way over to the walker Rick had glanced at earlier, firing an arrow into its head with his crossbow. Afterward, everyone got into the vehicles. Alex didn’t even bother making sure I got in the car with him, just getting ready to leave as soon as he could. I hesitantly made my way to Daryl, standing beside his bike. 

“Daryl, Can-” I got cut off as Daryl spoke. 

“Get on,” He revved the bike’s engine, glancing up at me as he waited for me to get on. I felt my lips curl into a smile as I threw my leg over the back of the bike. I rested my hands on my legs, waiting for him to go. Although, he never drove. 

“You gonna hold on or what?” Daryl turned his head, glancing back at me. I furrowed my brow in surprise as I hadn’t expected him to- well- expect me to hold him again. The first time was purely because I was horrified, I had almost died. Daryl didn’t say anything else, just waiting for me. I hesitantly reached forward, wrapping my arms around his torso as I locked my hands together in front of his stomach. He finally drove off, following the convoy of vehicles down the road. 

As we drove off, I rested my head on his back, once again closing my eyes. If it weren’t for the fear of falling off, and the loud engine, I swore I could have fallen asleep right there. I was exhausted, scared. My body ached as the adrenaline drained out of me. However, despite all of the pain, the trauma, the suffering I had just gone through, I felt a bit of warmth within me. It had only grown stronger when I realized I wouldn’t be alive on multiple occasions had it not been for Daryl. 

Meanwhile, Alex wasn’t even there when it all started. He wasn’t there often when I was sick. He’d never held my hair back when I threw up. He hadn’t even taken the time to ask if I was okay. 

But Daryl? I’d barely known him a week and he’d done all of those things. 

He’d done more for me in a week than Alex had done in three years.


	3. A Place To Call Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After finding a new place to call home, the group settles down in a prison. After encountering some prisoners, things take a turn for the worst and Eleanor experiences old memories. A new threat shows itself.

Over the next couple of months, things only got worse. 

Food was scarce, water as well. We were moving from place to place, scavenging for anything we could get. Lori's pregnancy had begun to show, and she could pop any day now. It worried me, knowing that Hershel and I were the only ones qualified enough to help deliver the baby. Even then, I didn't have much experience. The closest thing I had to experience in childbirth was when I had helped one of our cattle give birth. 

Once again, I found myself having a fever. I did my best to hide it, knowing all of the attention and goods needed to be directed to Lori. However, it didn't take long for Hershel and Maggie to notice I was burning up. The cherry on top was when I started vomiting. My immune system was already quite weak, so for my body to not have enough nutrients or hydration, it wasn't doing me any favors against the fever. Alex wasn't of any help either. He'd just scavenge, and when he didn't find anything, he'd just sit and complain about it. 

Just to our luck, we found a prison. It was overrun with walkers, but we figured the least we could do was secure the front field. It had a high fence, watchtowers, everything we needed for a safe place to sleep. 

Once it was cleared out, Rick and the others set up camp. They started a fire, settled down. Beth tried to lighten the mood by singing, as expected. It was always calming to hear her sing like she was just melting all of your pain away with her voice. 

I looked around the campfire, eyeing everyone in the circle. For once in a very, very long time, everyone looked… relieved. Happy. Although, Alex didn't. As usual, he was complaining about the fact it was a prison, and how fences aren't as strong as walls, nothing was good enough for him. I grew tired of it, pushing myself up as I walked off. He didn't even notice I left. I made my way over to Daryl, who was keeping watch as he paced back and forth on the toppled truck in front of the gate. 

"Daryl?" I called out, pushing my hair from my face as I got closer. 

"Yeah?" He lowered his crossbow to his side as he stopped pacing, glancing down at me, "You okay?" 

"I'm fine-" As I got to the truck, I stared up at him, "-can I come up?" 

"I don't think that's a good idea, you bein' sick and all." Daryl stared down at me, setting his crossbow down on the truck. 

"Yeah-" I sighed, "Guess that makes sense, don't need to get you sick." 

"No-" Daryl shook his head, "-don't need you fallin' off." 

"I'd just be sitting down. Can't stand that well anyways." 

Daryl paused for a moment, his gaze switching between me, and the group. He thought for a bit, then sighing, "Alright- Fine, but you sit." He kneeled, reaching his hand down to me. I grinned, taking his hand as I then started climbing up. Daryl squeezed my hand, pulling me the rest of the way up. As I got up, I yelped, gripping my shoulder. Daryl looked me over, a worried look on his face. 

"What's wrong?" He guided me to sit down, taking a seat next to me. I sat down as well, my legs hanging off the edge of the truck. 

"Just a cramp or something… it's nothing." I shook my head as I stared over at the group. 

Daryl didn't say anything. He shifted, now sitting cross-legged behind me. I turned my head to look at him, but before I could ask what he was doing, I felt his hands grip my shoulders just at my neck. I tilted my head back, letting out a soft groan of relief as he began rubbing my shoulders. 

"Thank you-" I winced as he pushed into a knot. 

"Sorry." Daryl moved his hand away from the knot, just focusing on the areas that weren't as sore for now. 

"Why're you doing this?" I asked, reaching my hand up as I placed it over his, still facing forward. 

"You're sick. Don't got no meds, no food. I can't do nothin' else, might as well do this," He shifted his hand back to the knot, working it out. I winced again, but I knew it'd feel much better after it was dealt with. "Eleanor?" Daryl spoke up. 

"Yeah?" I mumbled, my voice low as I was exhausted. 

"You sure you're okay?" 

"Mhm… why?" I glanced back at him. 

"I can feel that damn fever all the way in your neck." Daryl eventually let go of my shoulders, scooting forward to the side as he then sat next to me. 

"Heh…" I gave an anxious chuckle, "Not much I can do about it. Alex said-" 

_ "Fuck  _ Alex." Daryl snapped, "All that asshole's done since we left the farm is bitch and whine about everything. He's actin' like that fever is your fault, and it ain't. Nothin', you can do about it but wait it out." 

I lowered my head.  _ He's right.  _ I sighed, folding my hands in my lap. "I… I know. It's just- When I was going to college, I didn't know anybody. I've never been very social. Alex, he-" I leaned my head back, closing my eyes as I took a deep breath, "-he came through for me. He was my friend when I really needed one. After a while, we started dating, and, well… Now we're here."

"You don't need to worry about him anymore. Ain't your problem." Daryl placed his hand on my shoulder, squeezing it for a moment as he tried to comfort me. 

"Daryl," I turned my head to him, "Thank you."

Daryl didn't respond, just keeping his eyes averted. I examined him for a bit, my eyes scanning over him as he sat there. Eventually, I reached in my bag, pulling out a can. 

"Do you have a knife?" 

"Why?" Daryl still wasn't looking at me. 

"So you can open this corn." I let out a short laugh. 

Daryl turned his head, meeting my eyes, then the can of corn in my hand. "Where the hell did you get that?" 

"Found it in that last house… I wanted to wait before I brought it out, save it as long as I could until we absolutely needed it. But- now we're here. It's safe." 

“Been a while since we’ve had corn, right?” He smirked at me. I smiled, knowing immediately what he was talking about. 

“Don’t bring that up again or you don’t get any corn.” I joked, giggling.

Daryl pulled his knife from his belt. I passed him the can, to which he jabbed the knife into it, popping the can open. He set the knife down, about to eat the corn with his hands.

I grabbed his hand, "Please-  _ Please  _ do  _ not  _ stick your bloody, mud-covered hands in the corn." I reached in my bag, pulling out a plastic spoon. "Use a spoon, like a person. Okay, mister caveman?" I joked, giggling as I passed him the spoon. 

Daryl grinned, "Real funny." He took the spoon, taking a bite or two from the can. I watched as a relieved expression washed over his face, eating something other than a small animal or some scavenged, old peanut butter. He then passed the can and the spoon back to me. 

I took a few bites, glancing at him, "Good, right?" 

"Definitely. Gotta start keepin' you around." He had a bit of a smile. 

"I could say the same about you. Lost count how many times you've saved my ass these past few months." I ate some more of the corn, then passing the can back to Daryl. 

"No-" He shook his head, "You eat it. Need to keep your strength up." 

"Daryl, I'm probably going to throw it up in an hour anyway." I insisted, but he didn't take it. 

"Eat it," He stared out toward the camp. 

I gave in, eating the rest of the corn. My face burned, both from the fever, and from what I could assume was embarrassment. I was just glad it was dark enough he couldn't see it. 

"I should probably get back over to Alex… You know how he is about me being around you..." 

I could tell he was irritated at the mention of Alex, but he didn't say anything else. He just nodded, before he hopped down from the truck. I sat the empty can on the truck, starting to get down. Daryl reached up, gripping my leg as he steadied me, helping me down. 

"Gotcha." He made sure I didn't fall, getting me on my feet. I smiled at him, but by the time I did, he was already walking back to the group. 

~~~~~

After the wonderful first night, the next couple of days weren't as good. Dad lost his leg after getting bit, we had a run-in with some surviving prisoners. It was stressful. Just to our luck, the fence holding back the second group of walkers was somehow opened, unleashing the herd. Everybody became separated. Beth and Hershel went one way, Maggie, Carl, and Lori another. I ran with T-Dog toward the fence, desperately trying to close it so more walkers wouldn't escape. 

T-Dog grabbed the fence, pulling it to the side quickly, chain in hand. 

"T! Look out!" I screamed, a walker biting into his shoulder. 

"No! T!" I cried out as he screamed, shoving the walker and killing it immediately after. He ran toward me, pulling me into the hallway in an effort to get me out and away from the walkers. T dragged me along, his breathing erratic and heavy. I could tell he was in pain. 

"There's a set of double doors- they lead to a corridor that'll get you back to our cell block." 

"T- you need to stop!" I cried out, trying to get him to stop for a moment. 

"In getting you there!" He shouted. 

"Stop!" 

"Why?" He turned, "Sit here and wait to die?" 

"T, I'll do what I have to but I won't let you turn into one of those things!" 

T started walking again, to which I followed "I can't ask you for that." We both flinched as we heard an alarm begin to go off. 

"It's the pact, remember?" 

"This is God's plan." T huffed, "He'll take care of me. Always has. He's gonna help me lead you out of these tunnels." 

We continued down the tunnels. T had to lean on me, I could tell he was getting weaker. The further we went, the darker it got. At one point, we entered a hallway with flickering lights. The familiar sound of walkers came in as two of them rounded the corner. 

"We need to go!" I stepped back. T pushed me back. 

"No, we’re close!" 

"No! We need to leave!" I pulled his arm. 

He yelled, charging the walkers as he shoved them to the wall. He shouted to me, "Go! Go now! Go!" 

"T!" I cried out. 

"Go! I'm dead! Go-" All of the noise tuned out as I watched the walkers bite into him. They bit into his throat, his arms, and the only thing he could do was scream. The only thing  _ I  _ could do was run. I ran to the door, pushing through them. Tears poured down my face as I rounded corners after corner, trying to find my way out. Before long, I ran into another group of walkers. I turned on my heel, throwing myself into a closet and pulling the door shut. As I slammed the door, I stumbled back, tripping over something on the floor that I couldn't see in the pitch-black room. As I fell, my head struck the wall, and just like that, I was out cold. 

_ "Eleanor."  _

_ "El."  _

_ "Eleanor!"  _

_ My eyes shot open as I lifted my head, greeted by Daryl. He was kneeled beside the couch, his hand on my shoulder.  _

_ "Daryl?" I muttered. My voice was raspy, as I was dehydrated, the fever running through me. It was the middle of December, everything was ice cold, and I'd once again gotten sick.  _

_ Daryl and I had left the group, going out to scavenge on just his bike in hopes we could cover more ground. We'd been away from them for a week, and I managed to get sick on the first day. Daryl found a decent house to set up in, making sure to keep the fireplace going, and that I had a steady supply of water. He'd leave early in the morning to scavenge, but no matter what he'd be back by nightfall.  _

_ The living room had practically been fortified. Daryl had covered all of the windows with old sheets, curtains, any materials he could find to make sure walkers couldn’t see the light from the fireplace. Chairs and tables shoved in front of the doors, He went through the entire house to get plenty of blankets and a few pillows, knowing he had to keep me warm.  _

_ I couldn’t help but feel guilty when he’d leave. I came on the trip to help him, and he ended up being the one to help me.  _

_ “Found some corn, crackers. Not much, but it’s something.” Daryl dug in his bag, setting down the two cans and the plastic package of crackers. I slowly pushed myself to sit up, taking a deep breath. I could feel that my shirt was wet, likely from how much I was sweating. Daryl noticed almost immediately. He pulled off his crossbow, setting it off to the side as he then reached over to press his hand to my forehead.  _

_ I’d normally ask if it felt like the fever was gone yet, but I could certainly feel that it was still there. My breathing hitched as Daryl pulled his hand back.  _

_ “Worse than yesterday.” I could hear the disappointment in his voice as he forced his knife into the can, popping it open.  _

_ “I’m sorry.” I managed to speak as I leaned back against the couch.  _

_ “Why? Ain’t nothin’ you can do.”  _

_ “That’s the point,” I huffed, closing my eyes for a moment, “I came out here to help you. We were supposed to find supplies for everyone else, and I got sick again.”  _

_ “Not your fault.” Daryl picked up one of the water bottles, unscrewing the cap and offering it to me. I sighed, taking the bottle and tilting my head back, drinking from it.  _

_ When I finished drinking, I lowered the bottle into my lap, my hand shook as I tried to keep a grip on it. He took the bottle from me, closing it.  _

_ “You throw up again?” Daryl stood, "Pass out? Seeing things?"  _

_ I nodded my head, "Yes, almost yes, and no."  _

_ He'd been routinely asking me those questions every time he came back, so I'd gotten used to giving quick answers.  _

_ "Almost yes?" He raised his eyebrow, a bit concerned.  _

_ "I had to go to the bathroom, almost fell on my way back. That's all." I mumbled.  _

_ "If you're passin' out then it's gettin' worse." Daryl pulled his bag from his shoulder, setting it on the couch beside me. He dug around in it, eventually pulling out a small pill bottle.  _

_ "Found these." He held the bottle out to me. I took it, reading the label. It was aspirin.  _

_ "I think when you said we got lucky, that was an understatement." I gave him an exhausted laugh, opening the bottle.  _

_ "Nah, finding that was lucky." He grinned, handing me the water bottle again. I took two of the tablets, downing them with some water. Daryl took the aspirin and closed the bottle, setting it back in his bag before putting it on the floor. He took a seat on the floor, his back against the bottom of the couch. I eyed him for a moment, closing the water bottle.  _

_ "You can sit on the couch, you know. You're always on the floor…"  _

_ He glanced back at me, "You need'a lay down."  _

_ "You can still sit up here."  _

_ Daryl sighed, standing up beside me. He pulled off his jacket, laying it over the back of the couch, then kicking off his shoes. I scooted over to the side, pulling the blanket into my lap. He glanced at me for a moment before he took a seat on the far end of the couch.  _

_ We sat in silence for a moment, both staring at the fire as the wood crackled. I turned my head, eyeing him for a moment. It surprised me to see he was looking at me as well.  _

_ Daryl leaned back, putting his arm on the armrest, the other over the back of the couch.  _

_ "C'mere." He nodded his head to me. I tilted my head, a bit confused.  _

_ "What?"  _

_ "Come lay down." He repeated, lifting his hand to gesture for me to come over toward him.  _

_ I hesitantly shifted on the couch, crawling over beside him. I lowered myself down, laying my head on his thigh, now on my side. Daryl reached over, pulling the blanket the rest of the way over me until it was on my shoulders. I felt his hand carefully brushing the hair out of my face, eventually resting on the side of my head.  _

_ "Since when is the great Daryl Dixon so sweet?"  _

_ "Shut up." He scoffed. I didn't have to look at him to tell that he was smiling.  _

_ I gave a short laugh, only for it to be interrupted by a coughing fit. I held my fist in front of my mouth, shaking. Daryl placed his hand in my shoulder, carefully rubbing it as he tried to comfort me. When I finally stopped coughing, I gasped, catching my breath.  _

_ "You still breathin'?"  _

_ I nodded, "Yeah… Yeah. I'm fine…"  _

_ He patted my shoulder, once again pulling my hair from my face. Daryl leaned forward, looking at my face. His hand reached down under my chin, turning my head to look up. I rolled into my back, my head still on his leg.  _

_ "Your face is red, ain't good."  _

_ "Yeah…" I gave another short laugh.  _

_ "You need'a get some sleep." Daryl began to carefully get off of the couch. I grabbed his hand, glancing up at him.  _

_ "Can you stay?" I whispered.  _

_ Daryl stopped moving, relaxing back on the couch. "I gotta keep watch."  _

_ "Not tonight. Every time you keep watch, there's nothing out there. Just sleep, and not on the floor."  _

_ He sighed, nodding his head. "Fine."  _

_ I lowered my head back down, letting go of his hand. Daryl laid his head back on the couch, staring at the ceiling.  _

_ Later that night, I woke up, seeing that the fire had gone out. I huffed, pushing myself off the couch and making my way over to the fireplace. I tossed in a few pieces of wood, flicking my lighter. Once I got the fire going, I sat on the floor, staring at it.  _

_ The silence was broken when I heard the floorboards creak. I turned my head, seeing Daryl had woken up. He was standing behind me, looking down at the fire.  _

_ "Hey." I smiled up at him. He didn't say anything, but he did crouch down, lifting me from the ground. I yelped, grabbing onto him.  _

_ "Daryl, what're you-"  _

_ "Told you to sleep." He brought me over to the couch, setting me back down. Daryl didn't sit this time. He just grabbed the blanket, draping it over me and turning to walk back to the fireplace. I reached out, grabbing his wrist. When he felt my hand around his wrist, he stopped, but he didn't turn around.  _

_ "Will you stay? Please?" My voice was still raspy.  _

_ Daryl stood there for a moment, eventually turning around. He took a seat beside me, slipping his wrist from my hand, but rather than letting it go, he held my hand. I leaned over, resting my head on his shoulder. Neither of us spoke.  _

_ Just as I began falling asleep, I felt Daryl move once again. He carefully pushed me down, laying me on my side with my head on the pillow. I felt him move in behind me on the couch, my back against him. His arm wrapped around my torso, holding me in place so I wouldn't fall off the couch. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. The situation was nerve-racking, but before long, a feeling of warmth, safety, peace washed over me. I found myself falling asleep, my eyes closing as I drifted off.  _

I began to come to, my eyes fluttering open. It was Daryl. I couldn’t bring myself to remember what happened, or why he was carrying me, but as of now, I didn’t care. I held onto him while he walked through the dark hallway, my eyes barely staying open. Once he noticed that I was awake, he slowed his walking, looking me in the eye. 

“Ellie?” He muttered, “Eleanor?” 

Daryl kept walking, making sure not to bump my head on any of the walls. 

I mumbled, “Daryl? Where are we?” 

“The prison. Found you in a cell,” He answered, eventually getting back to our cell block. Daryl walked me into one of the empty cells, laying me on a bed. Once he’d put me down, he kneeled beside it, pushing my hair out of my face. 

“You okay?” 

I nodded, closing my eyes as they hadn’t adjusted to the light yet. 

“I’m gonna go tell them you’re here.” Daryl patted my shoulder, standing as he left the room. I heard him speaking to Rick for a moment just before I heard the footsteps of everyone else. I pushed myself to sit up, slowly opening my eyes. I smiled as I saw Daryl come in the room and step to the side, then seeing Rick. He got a bit of a smile on his face, stepping toward me while I stood. 

He wrapped his arms around me and I did the same, “Thank God-” He gasped, “Thank God.” 

As soon as he let go of me, Hershel hugged me as well. I returned the hug, “Dad!” I cried out, tears running down my cheeks. 

“How?” Hershel asked while he squeezed me, his head over my shoulder. 

“Solitary?” I gave an anxious laugh. 

“Poor thing fought her way into a cell,” Daryl spoke up, now leaning on the door frame, “Probably passed out… Judging by the way she was layin' I think she hit her head.” 

I nodded, "When I got in there, I tripped…" 

Beth and Carl came from behind Daryl. My eyes grew wide as I saw the baby in Beth’s arms. “Oh my goodness-” I smiled, looking at Rick. It didn’t take long for me to realize what had happened from the look on his face. “Oh my God, Rick…” I gasped, putting my hand over my mouth. I hugged him once again, “I’m so sorry… -Oh God…” I let go of him, turning toward Carl. 

Once Daryl and Hershel gave me a run-down of what had happened, I swore I could’ve burst into tears. Lori died, I had to tell them about T-Dog, Daryl told me what happened with one of the prisoners, and that they found a woman outside the fence. After they updated me on everything else, Hershel got me some water, and something to eat, then left me in the cell so I could recover. 

After they left, it wasn’t long before Alex made his way into the cell, leaning in the door. 

“Where the hell did you go?” 

“I hit my head...” I huffed, not giving him the satisfaction of eye contact. It pained me that I broke my promise to Beth, that I’d leave him after a week, but I couldn’t. Everything was changing so fast, and I didn’t want to put extra stress on the group of a breakup. 

“Why was he carrying you?” 

“I couldn’t walk. I have a concussion, just ask Hershel-” 

“Bullshit,” He snapped at me, “You can walk just fine. That fever is just another story you cooked up.” Alex stepped into the cell, tightly gripping my shoulder as he got in my face. “I told you to stay away from him, and I’m not going to tell you again.” 

“Stop it.” I pushed his hand away, scooting to the side on the bed, away from him. 

The look on his face filled with anger as he balled his fist. I crossed my arms, looking toward the floor as I took a deep breath, “I think we-” I got interrupted, yelping as I felt his knuckles slam into my cheek, just beside my eye. I put my hand over my face as I huddled against the mattress. 

“You don’t tell me what to do.” He wrapped his hand around my neck, mostly my jaw. “If I hadn’t given you the time of day, you’d just be that quiet little nobody. No friends, no man, nothing. You would be nothing.” 

I gasped, tensing up as I whimpered, my eyes watering. 

“Think about that the next time you want to talk back to me.” He let go of my jaw, taking a step back as he left the room. I sat there for a moment, eventually crawling beneath my blanket, burying my face into the pillow as I quietly sobbed. Carol came in to check on me, but when I didn’t respond, she left me alone. I felt guilty to have ignored her, but I couldn’t help it. I couldn’t bring myself to speak. 

After a while, Carl asked me to come out to the gate with him. He knew I needed my rest, but I assumed Carol had told him to get me up and moving, thinking it would help me feel better to feel some sunlight for a while. 

I grabbed a rifle, heading outside with Carl. Back on the farm, I was mortified by guns, but through that harsh winter, I got trained by Rick, Carol, and Daryl. Using them became second nature to me. I followed Carl outside, heading toward the front gate. It made me feel a little uneasy to see and  _ smell  _ the walkers outside the fence. While we stood around for a while, Carl eventually spoke. 

“Eleanor?” 

“Yeah?” I turned my head for a second before I jammed a knife into a walker’s head through the fence. 

“Are you okay?” Carl sounded worried. I didn’t need to worry him, he was just a kid. 

“I’m fine… Just feeling a little sick is all.” I reassured him, pulling the knife back. 

“What happened to your face?” Carl gestured toward me, “You didn’t have that when you came back.” 

I stuck my knife into my belt, then lifting my hand to my cheek as my fingers grazed over my skin. Judging by what Carl had said, and how sensitive the area felt, I could tell there must’ve been a bruise. 

“Daryl probably hit my head on a door or something.” I shrugged it off best I could, pulling my knife as I jabbed it into another walker. 

“Beth told me.” 

I stopped where I stood, pulling the knife back as I turned to face Carl. 

“She did what?” 

“She told me,” He tilted his head back to meet my eyes, “About you and Alex.” 

“I-” I took a deep breath, “That wasn’t for her to tell.” 

“I know. You don’t have to worry, I didn’t say anything.” Carl nodded to me. 

“Thank you, Carl… Just- Don’t tell your dad-” I stabbed another walker, “-or mine.” 

“I won’t. Promise.” Carl pulled out a knife, following me to help with the walkers. We usually left them alone, but I wanted to keep the gate clear for when the others got back. 

I let out a heavy sigh of relief as the familiar vehicles came into view. Carl and I ran to pull the gate open, letting them in. While I closed the first gate, Carl opened the second. Rick got out of the car, looking at Maggie. 

“Drive ‘em up, I’ll meet you there.” Rick then jogged to Carl, hugging him tightly, “Thank God.” 

He then stood, “Where’s Hershel?” 

“He’s in the cell block.” Carl pointed up toward the buildings. 

I peeked into the car before it drove off, feeling my chest tighten. 

“Where’s Daryl?” I glanced over at Rick, my voice cracking. 

Rick walked up to me, placing his hand on my shoulder to calm me down, “It’s alright, he’s alive. We ran into his brother.” 

I stared at Rick for a moment, my eyes watering. 

“They went off.” Rick continued. 

“I-” My breathing hitched, “He left…?” 

Rick lowered his head, nodding to me before he then looked back at me. 

“Daryl’s gone? He left…?” I gasped, “He’s gone? Is he coming back?” 

Rick put his hand on my shoulder once again, “Hey-” 

“He’s gone?” I felt tears running down my face as I took a deep breath, desperately trying to calm down. 

“What about Oscar?” Carl asked, looking up at Rick. Rick put his hand on Carl’s back, his other arm remaining over my shoulders as he walked.

“No.” He shook his head. Carl sighed, stepping back to pull the gate closed, then following us. Rick walked us up toward the prison, keeping me close while I was on the verge of tears. Once we got up there, Rick nodded for Carl and me to head out, “Go on.” 

Carl and I made our way inside, heading into the cell blocks. I dodged Alex, as he was busy talking to Beth. I headed to my cell, making sure to close the door as I climbed back into bed, burying my face into the pillow. 

_ Daryl’s gone? Why did he leave?  _

I hugged the pillow to my face, silencing my cries into the cushion. My head painfully ached, the bruise on my cheek throbbing as well as the one on the back of my head from when I struck it in the other cell. 

_ Was it me?  _

_ Did I do something wrong?  _

~~~~~

The next day went fine, rather peaceful apart from Rick lashing out at those strangers who had wandered into the prison. I stood outside with Hershel in the fields as he spoke to Rick. 

“You know I wouldn’t have hobbled all the way down here if it wasn’t important. Are you coming back soon?” Hershel gripped the fence, “Glenn’s on a warpath. Smart as he is, he can’t fill your boots. I’m afraid he’s reckless. We need you now more than ever.” 

I placed my hand on his shoulder, making sure he didn’t lose his footing. 

“Well if you’re so worried about him,” Rick swung his hand, “You lead.” 

“What are you doing out here?” I spoke up. 

Rick stared off into the woods. He looked horrible. It was frightening. I’ve never seen him look so stressed apart from when he found out what had happened to Lori.

“I’ve-” Rick paused, “I’ve been-- I’ve got… stuff, out here. Stuff.” 

“How much longer do you need?” Hershel asked. 

“I don’t know.” Rick sighed, “I don’t--” 

“Rick, is there anything we can help you with?” I asked, tilting my head to glance at Hershel, then back at Rick. 

Rick just stood there, sweat running down his face. “I saw something.” 

Hershel and I stared at him, growing worried. 

“Lori. I saw Lori…” He huffed, “I’m seeing Lori. Look, I know it’s not really her, but there’s gotta be a reason. It’s gotta mean something.” 

“Was it her on the phone?” Hershel asked. 

“Yeah,” Rick admitted, lowering his head, “Shane, too. And the town.” 

“Do you see them now?” He asked.

Rick looked around. 

“You’re looking for them.” 

“I’m waiting.” Rick gripped the fence. 

“For what?” I glared at Rick, my head still aching.

“I don’t know. Something. There’s an answer. I know it doesn’t make sense. Well, it does. It can make sense. I think in time it will make sense.” 

“Rick- You need to come inside.” I insisted. 

“You need rest.” Hershel continued for me. “It’s not safe out here.” 

Rick shook his head, “I can’t. I can’t-” He turned, walking off into the woods. Hershel and I just stood there, watching as he wandered onto the bridge over the creek. We both jumped as we heard a shot go off. Hershel shoved me into the grass, then moving down to lay beside me. 

“Stay down!” He spoke in a low tone. We started crawling back toward the prison, but I screamed as a bullet grazed my shoulder. 

“Eleanor!” He called out as he pressed his hand to my shoulder. I felt my heart drop as the loud roar of an engine echoed through the trees. I lifted my head, watching as a truck burst through the fence. We watched as a ramp dropped in the back, at least a dozen walkers coming out of the back of the truck. A woman in riot gear stepped out of the truck, running to the front gate. 

“Hershel! Ellie! Get out of there!” Rick screamed at us. 

Hershel sat up, firing a few shots into oncoming walkers. 

“I’m gonna go help Rick!” I shouted to Hershel, pushing through the pain as I made my way to the fence, squeezing through a gap in the chain link I had found on one of my rounds. I ran down a bit, then going through the second fence by the hole we had cut to get into the prison. I chased down Rick, jabbing my knife into the head of a walker behind him. 

“I told you to go!” Rick shouted at me as we then ran around the fence, walkers coming from all around us. 

I heard gunfire as Maggie, Beth, Carl, Alex, and Carol made their way out of the first gate, firing into the walkers that had been set loose in the field. Glenn drove in through the front gate, while that new woman, Michonne, ran out into the field and cut down walkers. 

Rick bashed the back of his gun into the head of a walker, and I did my best to stab them, bringing them down. However, the pain of the wound on my shoulder was getting to me. 

Rick got tackled to the ground by a walker as another pushed me up against the fence. I pushed back against it, screaming as another one grew closer. 

“Rick!” I cried out, watching him shove the walker off of him, beginning to bash its head in with his gun. 

Just before the walker attempted to bite me, an arrow burst through its forehead, nearly hitting me. I gasped, watching as it fell to the ground. The second walker kept coming, up until another man had shown up, jabbing a stick through its head. Rick bashed the next few walkers with the help of the other man, and… Daryl. 

Daryl, Rick, and the man all eyed each other for a moment before we began walking around the fence. Daryl met my eyes for just a second, but he looked away, following Rick. 

It took some time, but we finally made it back into the prison, all of us regrouping in the cell block. I sat on the steps a bit higher up than Hershel, the wound on my shoulder still bleeding. Everyone was a bit too stressed to notice, but they continued on. 

Rick and Hershel argued for a minute or two. Hershel wanted to leave, knowing fully well that this ‘governor’ was well above his means to take us out. 

“We’re not leaving.” Rick raised his voice. 

“We can’t stay here.” Hershel argued. 

“What if there’s another sniper?” Maggie piped in, “A wood pallet won’t stop one of those rounds.” 

“We can’t even go outside.” Beth added. 

Carol added in as well, “Not in the daylight.” 

“Look- Rick- Rick says we’re not running,” Glenn raised his voice as well, “So we’re not running.” 

“Nah, it’s better to just live like rats.” The man commented from the barred door to the side. 

“You got a better idea?” Rick retorted. 

“Yeah, We should’ve slid outta here last night and lived to fight another day.” 

Alex stood to the side, remaining silent as he crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. He didn’t like Rick, not at all, so I could tell he was on the side of Hershel on wanting to leave. At this point, I didn’t know what to do. I just knew that if it meant we survive, then we survive. The last thing I wanted was to end up on the road again. 

“But we lost that window, didn’t we?” The man continued, “Bet he’s got scouts on every road out of here by now.” 

“We ain’t scared of that prick.” Daryl hissed. 

“You should be.” The man corrected Daryl, “That truck through the fence thing? That’s just him ringing the doorbell. We might have some thick walls to hide behind, but he’s got the guns and the numbers, and if he takes the high ground around this place? Shoot, he could just starve us out if he wanted to.” 

“Let’s put him in the other cell block.” Maggie huffed. 

“No,” Daryl stepped up to the railing, “He’s got a point.” 

“This is all you! You started this!” Maggie shouted at the man. 

“What difference is it gonna make figuring out whose fault it is? What do we do?” Beth whined, walking to the stairs. 

Hershel sighed, “I said we should leave. Now Axel’s dead. We can’t just sit here!” 

Rick began to walk off, to which Hershel stood from the stairs. “Get back here!” He shouted at him. It was the first time in a while I’d heard him shout like that. “You’re slipping, Rick. We’ve all seen it. We understand why, but now is not the time. You once said this isn’t a democracy. Now you have to own up to that. I put my family’s life in your hands. So get your head clear, and do something.” 

Everyone stood there for a moment, taking some time to cool down. I made my way back to my cell, sitting on the edge of my bed. I hunched over, putting my elbows on my knees as I took deep breaths. My shoulder was still aching. I pressed a cloth to it, wincing. Knowing I needed to treat it so it wouldn’t get infected, I pulled my shirt off, throwing it to the side as I was now in just my bra. I pressed the cloth to it again, gritting my teeth for a moment as it stung. 

The silence in my cell was broken as Daryl stepped in. He looked me over, immediately turning to step back out, “Sorry-” 

“Daryl,” I called out to him, making sure not to be too loud. 

He kept his back to me, but he stayed in the doorway. “Yeah?” 

“Can you help me? I got hit.” 

I’d never seen Daryl turn around faster. It dawned on me that when I said I got hit, it seemed like I meant I got shot. 

“Where is it? Why didn’t you say nothing?” Daryl stepped over to the bed, looking me over once again. 

“No- I-” I pulled the rag from my arm, blood dripping down my arm, “It grazed me. I just need stitches, but I don’t want my dad to see it. He’s already stressed out.” 

Daryl eyed the wound, nodding. “You got anything?” 

“I have one of those sewing kits in my bag. I know you don’t know too much medical stuff, so I’ll just tell you what to do. I’d do it myself, but I can’t see the backside of it.” 

Daryl dug in my bag, eventually pulling out the small tin box with thread, needles, and some scissors. 

“It’s gonna hurt like a bitch, sure you want me to do it?” 

I nodded, “Please. If you don’t mind.” 

Daryl nodded, standing as he took a seat beside me on the bed. He grabbed my water bottle, pouring it over the wound to wash it out. He then poured some on the washcloth, wiping around it. Daryl paused when I yelped, pulling the rag away. 

“It’s fine- It just stings.” 

“Told you.” Daryl then threaded the needle, Carefully going about stitching the wound. It wasn’t too deep, but it still needed to be closed. 

Not long after he got done stitching me up, I felt my face go red as I realized I wasn’t wearing my shirt anymore. It became clear why Daryl had tried to leave the room so quickly. 

“Tell me you don’t got a fever again.” Daryl scoffed, pressing the backside of his hand to my forehead. 

“No- I- No. I’m fine.” I grabbed my blanket, pulling it in front of my torso. Daryl noticed, looking down at the floor. 

“Oh…” He tucked the needle and thread spool back into the tin, closing it as he held the tin in his lap. 

I stared at him for a moment before I eventually lifted my hand, placing it over his. Daryl turned his head, facing me. I met his eyes, the both of us just staring at each other. I hesitantly leaned in, but he did it much quicker than me. Our lips crashed together as he reached up, his fingers running through my hair. The tin with the sewing kit dropped to the floor, the spools of thread rolling out. Neither of us cared. His other hand reached around the small of my back, pulling me closer. I reached up, my hand resting on his wrist, the other pushing on the bed. We wrestled with each other, Daryl occasionally nipping at my bottom lip. 

As soon as we heard footsteps in the hallway, Daryl pulled back. I did the same, pulling the blanket back over my chest. Daryl kneeled on the floor, picking up the pieces of the sewing kit and tossing them back in the tin. The footsteps seemed to be Glenn as he showed up at the door, glancing at me, then at Daryl. 

“Daryl?” Glenn leaned on the door for a moment, “Rick needs to talk to us.” 

“Tell him I’m comin’.” Daryl waved Glenn off, putting the lid back on the tin as he put it in my bag. Glenn walked off. Once Daryl saw Glenn had left, he reached in my bag and grabbed me a t-shirt. 

He stood, “Here.” Daryl offered the shirt to me. 

“Thanks.” I took the shirt, pulling it over my head. 

Daryl stood there for a moment, giving me a once-over. I glanced up at him, then giving him a slight smile. 

“What?” 

“Nothin’. Don’t worry ‘bout it.” Daryl made his way to the door, glancing back with a grin as he left. 

Once he had left, I struggled to realize what had just happened. My face burned a bright red, my skin hot to the touch. 

_ What the hell just happened?  _


End file.
